velvet









velvet


noun

  1. a fabric of silk, nylon, acetate, rayon, etc., sometimes having a cotton backing, with a thick, soft pile formed of loops of the warp thread either cut at the outer end or left uncut.
  2. something likened to the fabric velvet, as in softness or texture: the velvet of her touch; the velvet of the lawn.
  3. the soft, deciduous covering of a growing antler.
  4. Informal. a very pleasant, luxurious, desirable situation.
  5. Informal.
    1. money gained through gambling; winnings.
    2. clear gain or profit, especially when more than anticipated.

adjective

  1. Also vel·vet·ed. made of velvet or covered with velvet.
  2. Also vel·vet·like. resembling or suggesting velvet; smooth; soft; velvety: a velvet night; a cat’s velvet fur.

noun

    1. a fabric of silk, cotton, nylon, etc, with a thick close soft usually lustrous pile
    2. (as modifier)velvet curtains
  1. anything with a smooth soft surface
    1. smoothness; softness
    2. (as modifier)velvet skin; a velvet night
  2. the furry covering of the newly formed antlers of a deer
  3. slang, mainly US
    1. gambling or speculative winnings
    2. a gain, esp when unexpectedly high
  4. velvet glove gentleness or caution, often concealing strength or determination (esp in the phrase an iron fist or hand in a velvet glove)
n.

early 14c., probably from Old Provençal veluet, from Vulgar Latin *villutittus, diminutive of Vulgar Latin villutus “velvet,” literally “shaggy cloth,” from Latin villus “shaggy hair, nap of cloth, tuft of hair,” probably a dialectal variant of vellus “fleece.”

see under iron hand.

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